In the opening days of 2011, the Marcellus girls volleyball team made it official – it will move from a winter to a fall schedule.
This decision was years in the making. Prior to 2006, all Section III girls volleyball teams played in the winter. But in the fall of that year, Class AA schools moved to the fall, giving itself an opportunity to compete for the state championships held each November at Glens Falls Civic Center.
The trend continued last September when the area’s other OHSL Liberty division powers, Skaneateles and Cazenovia, moved to the fall, battling for a sectional title – which Skaneateles won. Both schools saw participation in volleyball increase, too.
As this was going on, Marcellus conducted a survey with all of its girls in sixth through 10th grades, asking whether a move from the winter to fall would adversely affect established fall programs like soccer and cross country.
When the school district found that little impact would be made by a season switch, they agreed to the move, meaning varsity and JV teams will now compete August through November – though the modified team (seventh and eighth grade) maintains a winter schedule.
While a winter program, Marcellus has won 12 Section III championships, eight of them in a nine-year span from 2000 to 2008 under head coach Hy Bryant.
A 13th title could happen this winter, as the Mustangs, off its first loss to the season to Homer on Jan. 7, swept Westhill 25-16, 25-8, 25-15 Monday night to improve its record to 7-1.
On the back line, Jenna Annable recorded nine assists, while Tori Bingham amassed six assists, five digs, three kills and two aces. Nicole Fletcher had seven kills, with Devon Landers adding five kills. Sara Ryan had four kills and three aces as Allie Massara contributed three aces and Allie Vanderwerf added three assists.
